AN ASSESSMENT OF CONFLICT RESOLUTION MECHANISMS USED BY UNIVERSITY-BASED UNIONS IN PROMOTING INDUSTRIAL PEACE IN PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN NORTH-CENTRAL NIGERIA
Folorunsho, Olayinka Paul , Abdul Adamu. PhD and Usman A. Yusuf, PhD
Volume 14 Issue 1
Abstract
This study is an assessment of conflict resolution mechanisms used by university-based unions in promoting industrial peace in public Universities in North-Central Nigeria. Specifically, the study examined the effect of collective bargaining and arbitration in public universities in North-Central Nigeria. The study was anchored on the theory of organizational equilibrium. The Pluralist Theory of Industrial Relations. This study adopted a cross-sectional survey research design, a strategy deemed appropriate for its ability to capture a comprehensive snapshot of variables at a single point in time. The target population for this study consists of seven thousand and eighty-nine (7,089) academic and non-academic staff who are members of the major university-based unions (ASUU, NASU, and SSANU) in selected public universities in North-Central Nigeria, including the University of Jos (UNI-JOS), Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), and the Federal University of Technology, Minna (FUTMINNA). Primary data was collected using a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire administered to the three hundred and seventy-nine (379) sampled respondents using a proportionate stratified random sampling technique combined with simple random sampling. The quantitative data were coded and analyzed using SPSS version 26. While multiple regression was used to analyze the collected data, a 0.05 level of significance was used. The study found that both collective bargaining and arbitration have a significant positive effect on industrial peace in public universities in North-Central Nigeria. The study recommended that University management and union leaders in public universities in North-Central Nigeria should institutionalize regular and structured collective bargaining processes. This should include periodic negotiation meetings, transparent communication of policies, and strict adherence to collective agreements. They should also adopt formal and well-defined arbitration frameworks as part of their conflict resolution mechanisms by engaging neutral and independent arbitrators when disputes cannot be resolved through negotiation. Keywords: Arbitration, Collective bargaining, Industrial peace, conflict resolution mechanism, university-based unions, public universities
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